Happy Heart Day Cards

I have been about to die to use these stamps from my new Happy Heart Day stamp set. I have had the set for about 2 weeks and today is the first day I have gotten to play with it.

The elephant is my favorite stamp from the set but the mouse runs a close second. It's just a killer set in my opinion. SU has outdone themselves with this catalog and my wish list is forever long. TFL!!

Elephant Card. Stamps: Happy Heart Day; Paper: Basic Gray, Rose Red, Taken with Teal, Tempting Turquoise, White, Bali Breeze Designer; Ink: Basic Black, Black Stazon: Accessories: Punches - Scallop Circle, 1-3/8, 1-1/4", and 1" Circle, Corner Rounder, White Gel Pen, Rose Red Ribbon, Glassy Glaze Enamel, Dimensionals, Watercolor Wonder Crayons - Going Gray, Regal Rose, Rose Red, Tempting Turquoise, Taken with Teal, Old Olive.

Mouse Card. Stamps: Happy Heart Day; Paper: Ruby Red, Groovy Guava, White, Ginger Blossom Designer; Ink: Ruby Red, River Rock, Groovy Guava, Black Stazon; Accessories: Gold Brads, Watercolor Wonder Crayons - Cameo Coral, Ruby Red.

Are You Ready for Spring?

Here is another card with my Starving Artistamps stamps. They have some really beautiful flower stamps and I have lots of them to show you in the future. Don't forget to check out their website to get some of your own and check back here to see more samples.

I created the background piece on this one with a small leaf branch stamp. It made a really nice soft background for this card. I stamped, watercolored, cut out and then put the flowers and leaves on the card with dimensionals. I finished off the card with some nice wide white organdy ribbon. TFL!!

Stamps: Medium Pansy & Leave, set of 2 - P20.02, Large Pansy & Leave, Set of 2 - P20.01, and Small Leaf Branch P16.03 - all by Starving Artistamps, Think Spring Sentiment by Sun Spirit Studio and distributed by Starving Artistamps; Paper: Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum, Pale Plum, Always Artichoke, White; Ink: Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Mellow Moss, So Saffron, Basic Black, Black Stazon; Accessories: Wide White Organdy Ribbon, Basic Black Marker, Dimensionals.

Christmas Presents for my Mom and Mom-in-Law

I had so much fun making these presents. 2 good friends came over to my house on Sunday and stamped with me. I made these cards while they were there. I made 2 each for a total of 6 cards with matching envelopes. After my friends left, I made the boxes to put the cards in with textured cardstock then used some supplies from my Happy Me Scrappin' Kit to decorate them. The gifts were a big hit. TFL!!

ETA: I used this tutorial by Andrea Walford for making the box. Her directions are for a 3 X 3 card box and I just adjusted it to fit normal sized cards (4-1/4" X 5-1/2"). It was actually very simple to make. Andrea provides great directions. I did make my box lid a little taller than hers though since my box was bigger.

Teacher's Gift

Here are a few pictures of the gift I made for Garrett's teacher for Christmas. The can is made with a Pringle's can that I covered with the Dashing Designer Paper from Stampin' Up! I filled the can with caramels. I made an envelope to match the Christmas card out the designer paper also. It's the first time I have made an envelope out of designer paper. I think it turned out very cute. I put her a gift card to Chili's inside the Christmas card, which is one of her favorite places to eat. He loves Mrs. Vetterick, his third grade teacher.

Have a great Christmas holiday!! TFL!!

Stamps: Perfect Presentation, See You Around Jumbo Wheel; Paper: River Rock, Real Red, Old Olive, White, Dashing Designer; Ink: Real Red, River Rock, Old Olive; Accessories: Real Red and Old Olive 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon, Small and Large Tag Punch, Gold Cord, Red Eyelet, Crop-a-Dile, River Rock Ribbon, Envelope Template, Horizontal Slot Punch, Round Tab Punch, 1-3/8" Circle Punch, 1-1/4" Circle Punch, 1" Circle Punch, Photo Corner Punch, Brads, Jumbo Wheel Handle.

Last Minute Cards

I was trying to get all my cards out in the mail and realized today I was short 30 cards. Yes, I know that's not a small quantity. What was I thinking?? I produced 16 of these cards today in 2 different colors. I got my inspiration from this card (it's the second card in her post) by Nancy Riley. Thanks for the inspiration Nancy. TFL!!

Stamps: Perfect Presentation, Season of Joy, In the Spotlight, Jumbo Whimsy Wheel; Paper: Sage Shadow, Certainly Celery, Always Artichoke, White, Wintergreen Designer; Ink: Always Artichoke, Sage Shadow, Certainly Celery, Soft Sky; Accessories: 5-Petal Flower Punch, Brads, Sage Shadow Ribbon, Dotted Organdy Ribbon, Jumbo Wheel Handle, Dimensionals.

Club Card

This is a card we did at Club last week. One of my precious ladies needed to do a birthday party invitation for her grandson and wanted it to be a pocket card so we did this one for her to use as an example. Not a whole lot of stamping on this but everyone loved it. TFL!!

Stamps: Big Flowers, Fundamental Phrases; Paper: Apricot Appeal, Certainly Celery, Old Olive, White, Polka Dots & Paisley Designer; Ink: Apricot Appeal, Certainly Celery, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Punches - Scallop Circle, 1-3/8" Circle, 1-1/4" Circle, 1/2" Circle, Corner Rounder, Word Window, Brads, Dotted Grosgrain Ribbon, White Gel Pen, Dimensionals.

Mommy & Baby Bugs

Another "buggy" card from Starving Artistamps. Mommy and baby buggies are a nice happy family. They told me that they wanted to go visit another family so I will be sending them off to make someone else happy. The baby buggies are embossed with Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder and they are very sparkly in real life. If you would like to have a "buggy" family of your own please visit Starving Artistamps to check them out. TFL!!

Stamps: Large Moth P5.8, Small Moth P5.9, Fern Leaf Tooled Leather Background by Starving Artistamps, Sentiment KSAI-302 designed by Artful Inkables and distributed by Starving Artistamps; Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Groovy Guava, Blue Bayou, Wild Wasabi, White; Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Groovy Guava, Wild Wasabi, Basic Black, VersaMark; Accessories: Photo Corner Punch, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder, Square Rhinestone Brads.

It's the season for a Bug

It's that time of the year again. Yes, the time that most of us start getting the sniffles. If you haven't gotten them yet then it's probably not far in your future.

I'm using another one of my Starving Artistamps. Isn't my little "girly" dragonfly cute? After I stamped and colored her, I embossed her with Glassy Glaze Enamel to give her a shiny appearance. I used another dragonfly to make the background on the coral paper. I'm sure it won't be long until I need to send this card to someone. Go visit Starving Artistamps to check out this bug and their other great lines of stamps and accessories. TFL!!

Stamps: Dragonfly (main image) KSAI-308, Dragonfly (background) KSAI-306 both designed by Artful Inkables and distributed by Starving Artistamps, Sentiments 46.14 & 46.09 both by Starving Artistamps; Paper: Really Rust, Cameo Coral, Old Olive, Very Vanilla; Ink: Choc. Chip, Timber Brown Stazon, VersaMark; Accessories: Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, Ribbon, Ticket Corner Punch, Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Glassy Glaze Enamel, Pop-Up Glue Dots, Aqua Painter.

New Stamp Mania

New toys, oh what fun!! I got my preview mini items in today and I couldn't wait to play with them. Most of all I couldn't wait to use the new Ginger Blossom Designer Paper. It is SCRUMPTIOUS!! Not only did I get new stamps and designer paper from the preview mini but I got some textured cardstock for the first time. I used Groovy Guava textured cardstock as the base for this card. On the scalloped border I used the 1/16" circle punch and put River Rock cardstock behind to show through. I stamped the sentiment "it's your birthday" and attached it with a dimensional on top of the River Rock ribbon. TFL!!

Stamps: A Little Birdie Told Me; Paper: Groovy Guava Textured, Ruby Red, River Rock; Ink: Timber Brown Stazon, Choc. Chip, Groovy Guava; Accessories: Square Rhinestone Brads, River Rock Ribbon, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, Dimensionals, Slit Punch, 1/16" Circle Punch, Aqua Pen.

Riding Waves

This is the first Hula Bunny stamp that I received from Stamp LaJolla. Isn't he just precious? I am really loving all the stamps that I received to make samples with and am having a lot of fun playing with them. They are top quality rubber stamps so check them out. I can't wait to get my hands on more of these bunnies. You can make some cute, playful cards with them. TFL!!

Stamps: Hula Bunny and Sentiment from Stamp LaJolla; Paper: Garden Green, Close to Cocoa, Pumpkin Pie, Choc. Chip, Pumpkin Pie Designer; Ink: Timber Brown Stazon, Chic. Chip; Accessories: Brads, Photo Corner Punch, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack.

So Much Wonderful

This is a card we made this week at Stamp Club. It's the first time I have demoed this set that we got free at Regionals this year. I really like it more for scrapbookking because the circle stamps in it are so large. It makes great backgrounds for 12 x 12 pages.

We colored the flowers with Watercolor Wonder Crayons, cut them out and glued on some bling I got at a local craft store. The word "thanks" is popped up with dimensionals. TFL!!

Stamps: So Much; Paper: Bravo Burgundy, Sage Shadow, Pretty in Pink, White; Ink: Black Stazon, Bravo Burgundy, Basic Black; Accessories: Dotted Grosgrain Ribbon (non SU), Bling (non SU), Watercolor Wonder Crayons in Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Sage Shadow, and Handsome Hunter, Dimensionals.

My First RAK

This is the first RAK I have ever received. It's from Mercy Kerin at Lord Have Mercy. Isn't it BEAUTIFUL? Mercy sent me several of these 3 x 3 gift cards and I feel so blessed to have received them from someone so talented. If you haven't looked at Mercy's blog run on over there and have a peek. She does some awesome work. Thanks Mercy!!!

Fall Flower from Stamp La Jolla

I know I haven't posted in over a week now but I have been working hard on my monthly Stampin' Up events that I normally hold the first week of every month. I will post some of my Club cards that my ladies did this week after this post so stay tuned.

This card was made with some of my new stamps from Stamp La Jolla. I really like this new flower stamp that I used on this card and especially the vine that I made a background with on the rose red cardstock. I have lots and lots of new stamps from Stamp La Jolla so check back soon for more samples. Check out their website for the wide variety of quality stamps and accessories that they carry. You won't be disappointed. TFL!!

Stamps: Radiant Flower, Graceful Vine and "Happy Birthday" Sentiment - all by Stamp La Jolla; Paper: Always Artichoke, Rose Red, Choc. Chip, River Rock, White - all by Stampin' Up; Ink: Choc. Chip, Purely Pomegranate - all by Stampin' Up!; Accessories: Wide Satin Choc. Chip Ribbon, Gold Cord, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, Brads, Watercolor Wonder Crayons in Regal Rose and So Saffron, Key Tag Punch, Horizontal Slot Punch, Ticket Corner Punch - all by Stampin' Up!

More Good News!!

I have been chosen as a new member of the Stamplajolla Design Team. I received some of their stamps this week so look for some posts soon using these awesome stamps. Visit them here to check out their latest and greatest!!

Bridal Shower

I made this card for a friend at work that is going to a bridal shower on Saturday. She wanted the colors to be bright pink, black and white and the only instructions she gave me were to make it sassy. I hope I achieved that effect. I did emboss the heart from Time Well Spent with Iridescent Ice embossing powder and used several dimensionals throughout the main image. The small black panel underneath the main image has been punched with half of the 1/2" circle punch on each end and then the organdy ribbon wrapped around it. I think I did OK with the ribbon after getting instructions from the ribbon tying queen, Nancy Riley. Go check out her blog and you'll see all her beautiful ribbon tying, along with some beautiful cards, first hand. TFL!!

Stamps: Time Well Spent, Polka Dots and Paisley; Paper: Pink Passion, Basic Black, Whisper White; Ink: Basic Black, Versamark; Accessories: Brads, Organdy Ribbon, White Gel Pen, Basic Black Marker, Punches - Word Window, 1/2" Circle, 1-3/8" Circle, 1/4" Circle, Marvy Giga Scallop Circle, Coluzzle Cutting System, Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder.

Season of "Woodsy" Joy

This card reminds me of the woods. I'm assuming it's the colors I used, non-traditional Christmas colors.

I've been wanting to try the "Cracked Glass Technique" and I can't believe how easy it was. I used Glassy Glaze Enamel for the embossing. I took the image, inked with VersaMark, added the glassy glaze enamel, and heated. I did this 3 times, waiting 3 - 5 minutes in between each layer. After I was finished embossing the paper was curled up quite a bit. I put it in the freezer for 3 minutes then took it out and bent it in several directions until I got the amount of cracking that I wanted. Once I cracked the image it laid flat then. I love the way it turned out. TFL!!

Stamps: Season of Joy, So Many Sayings, In the Spotlight, So Swirly Jumbo Wheel; Paper: River Rock, Chocolate Chip, Always Artichoke, Close to Cocoa, White, Holiday Harmony Designer; Ink: River Rock, Chocolate Chip, Always Artichoke, Close to Cocoa, Versamark; Accessories: 5-Petal Flower Punch, Rhinestone Brad, Organdy Ribbon, Glassy Glaze Enamel, Markers in Summer Sun and Chocolate Chip, Cutter's Tool Kit, Jumbo Wheel Handle, Dimensionals.

Beautiful Flower

Isn't this flower from Starving Artistamps gorgeous? I've had it for a week or so and I couldn't wait to get some ink on it. Very pretty in my opinion. This is a pretty simple card but I like the way it turned out. Don't forget to visit Starving Artistamps if you like this stamp!! TFL!!

Stamps: Flower (P18.02), Leaves on flower stem (part of Pansy set P20.04), Fern Leaf Tooled Leather Background - all from Starving Artistamps, Sentiment - SunSpirit Studio, distributed by Starving Artistamps; Paper: Always Artichoke, Mellow Moss, Pixie Pink, Pink Passion, White; Ink: Mellow Moss, Always Artichoke, Pixie Pink, Pink Passion, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Brads, Wide Organdy Ribbon, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, Ticket Corner Punch, Photo Corner Punch.

Lacy Time

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!!

I LOVE the way this card came together. It took me forever it seemed to pull it together but it's probably my favorite card right now. It's got a "frilly" look that I am loving. I used some of the smaller flowers and stamped them in white on the vellum to create a soft background. This set, that Stampin' Up! gave me for free, is absolutely wonderful. I can't wait to keep using it. It has so much potential. TFL!!

Stamps: Time Well Spent; Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, Groovy Guava, Vellum, White; Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Wile Wasabi, Basic Black, White Craft; Accessories: Groovy Guava Ribbon, Slit Punch, White Gel Pen, Brads, Giga Scallop Circle Punch (Marvy Uchida), Markers in Rose Red, Regal Rose, Green Galore, Pretty in Pink, Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder (on Butterfly), Glassy Glaze Enamel (on Flower).

Hello Friend

Here are more of my stamps from Starving Artistamps. I like the way this one turned out, very "outdoorsy" looking. Please visit Starving Artistamps' website for more of their awesome line of stamps. TFL!!

Stamps: Cat Tails (KSAI-204 designed by Artful Inkables, distributed by Starving Artistamps), Tight Weave Background (P24.02), Moth (P5.8), and Sentiment (46.15) all by Starving Artistamps; Paper: Always Artichoke, Close to Cocoa, Choc. Chip, Night of Navy, Brocade Blue, Creamy Caramel, Mellow Moss, White; Ink: Mellow Moss, Choc. Chip, Brown Timber Stazon; Accessories: Various Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Linen Thread, Brads, Crafter's Tool Kit, Spritzer Tool.

Doodle Gus

This little critter is named Gus and he is made by Doodle Factory and distributed by Starving Artistamps. I have several of these Doodle Factory animals and I could not wait to use one of them.

I used the round tab punch to make the 2" circle that Gus is showing through. You take a 3" x 3" square piece of paper, push the tab punch in as far as it will go (make sure it is centered in the square) and punch out a tab. Turn the 3" x 3" square one turn and punch in the center again and you get this 2" circle. Pretty cool, huh?

It's hard to tell in the picture but the pomegranate piece is stamped with the Ornate Tooled Leather Background stamp from Starving Artistamps with pomegranate ink. I then used SA's faux stitch stamp to do the border on the small matted piece.

Gus made me happy while I was making this card because he is so cute. TFL and check back for more Doodle Factory animals!!

Stamps: Gus - Doodle Factory Animals, Ornate Tooled Leather Background, Medium Stitch Set (faux stitching), Sentiments (All Stamps distributed by Starving Artistamps); Paper: Always Artichoke, Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, White (All Paper by Stampin' Up!); Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Always Artichoke, Going Gray, Choc. Chip (All Ink by Stampin' Up!); Accessories: Brads, Round Tab Punch, Photo Corner Punch, Cutter's Tool Kit, Wild Wasabi Ribbon (All Accessories by Stampin' Up!)

Time Well Spent, I Love You

This is my Level 3 Hostess Set from the new catalog that is coming out in January. Stampin' Up! sent it to all demonstrators as a free gift. I LOVE IT!! I saw pictures of it before I got it but I had no idea how pretty it was until I saw it in person. This designer paper is a new for me also. I got it in today and it's called Le Jardin. I wasn't sure I would like it until I got it on this card. Isn't it scrumptious? I got a little carried away with the dimensionals on this card but it gave it a nice look. I put them on the designer paper piece, the main image matted piece, and both cut out flowers. I also roughed the edges. TFL!!

Stamps: Time Well Spent; Paper: River Rock, Bordering Blue, Very Vanilla, Le Jardin Designer; Ink: Choc. Chip, Timber Brown Stazon; Accessories: Non SU Organdy Ribbon, Cutter's Tool Kit, Dimensionals.

Stamp-a-Stack #2

Here's my second card for the Stamp-a-Stack I am doing on Monday. I like this one much better than my first. Patterned paper makes a world of difference to me in how a card turns out. Yes, they look good without it but I'm hung up on using the designer paper right now. I hope my girls like this card #2. TFL!!

Stamps: Perfect Presentation, Jumbo Whimsy Wheel; Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Mellow Moss, Always Artichoke, White, Holiday Harmony Designer; Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Versamark; Accessories: Purely Pomegranate Ribbon, Dimensionals.

Stamp-a-Stack #1

OK, I'm back to Stampin' Up! for a little bit. This is one of the cards that I am doing for a Stamp-a-Stack on Monday. Everyone that knows me knows how hard it is for me to do "simple" on a card. I like to add too much bling. This card took me forever because I kept putting stuff on it then taking it off, putting something else on it then taking it off. Wow, what pressure. I hope my girls like it. We are going to do 15 cards, 5 each of 3 different designs. Now, on to the next card. TFL!!

Stamps: Season of Joy; Paper: Wild Wasabi, Purely Pomegranate, Rose Red, Regal Rose, White; Ink: Wild Wasabi, Purely Pomegranate, Basic Black; Accessories: Photo Corner Punch, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, Brad.

Wedding Bouquet

OK, I have never made a card like this before but I really like how it turned out. These silhouette stamps from Starving Artistamps are BEAUTIFUL!! They have 2 Milestones pages of stamps that are all silhouettes. I happened to get several of them and you have seen all of them I have now except for one. Another great stamp design Kristen.

The stitching around the outside edge of the card is done with the Medium Stitch Set of stamps. It comes with 2 different "faux" stitch stamps. Check them out here. The stamps are also 6 inches long which is longer than your normal sized card. All you stampers do know how great that is, right? If you're stamping across the card where it is 5-1/2 inches you DO NOT have to ink the stamp again and try to line it up. Yeah!!! TFL!!

Stamps: Bride and Groom (KSAI-902), Bouquet (KSAI-903) designed by Artful Inkables, distributed by Starving Artistamps, Medium Stitch Set (faux stitching) by Starving Artistamps, Sentiment by Sun Spirit Studio, distributed by Starving Artistamps; Paper: Black, White; Ink: Black, White Craft; Accessories: White Embossing Powder, Dotted Organdy Ribbon.

Wedding Season

Card # 4 and I'm almost there. These cards for Starving Artistamps have really been fun to make. This type of card is way out of the box for me. I'm not used to making elegant cards. Did I get it? Is it elegant enough for a wedding? This is another stamp that was designed by Kristen of Artful Inkables . Doesn't she do a great job? Starving Artistamps distributes these stamps. Visit them to check out the Artful Inkable stamps and the other great lines they carry.

For all of you Stampin' Up! fans I will be getting back to doing some cards with SU products sometime this coming week. I have an obligation to Starving Artistamps to get some cards done for them to show at the StampScrapArtTour next weekend. It has really been fun fulfilling this obligation, I just wish more of my obligations were like this.

I used glossy paper for the main bride and groom image. I stamped it with Night of Navy craft ink and embossed it with Iridescent Ice. It is so shiny IRL. The bird is stamped with Bashful Blue craft ink and embossed with Iridescent Ice. I used scalloped scissors on the double-layered matted piece underneath the ribbon. I then used the Cracked Grout Mosaic stamp from SA for the background on the night of navy cardstock. The sentiment is stamped with Versamark and embossed with White Embossing Powder. TFL!!

Stamps: Bride and Groom (KSAI-901), Sentiment (KSAI-906), Bird (KSAI-706), Cracked Grout Mosaic Background (P22.05) - All Stamps © Starving Artistamps; Paper: Night of Navy, Brocade Blue, Bravo Burgandy, Glossy White - All Stampin' Up!; Ink: Night of Navy (Classic and Craft), Brocade Blue Craft, Versamark - All Stampin' Up! ; Accessories: White Gel Pen, Scallop Circle Punch, Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder - Stampin' Up!, Non SU White Organdy Ribbon and Non SU Scallop Scissors.

Starving Artistamps Wedding Card

This is my first card using my new stamps from Starving Artistamps. I was so thrilled with the quality of the stamps when I received them today. The rubber is very deeply etched and they stamp crystal clear. I know that all my fellow "stamping addicts" know how important that is.

I stamped the main image first in Versamark ink. I then stamped it again in Whisper White but a little offset. It gives the image a "shadow" effect.

Please visit Starving Artistamps to check out their full line of stamps. The main image on this card is one of their newly released stamps. Check out their section labeled "What's New" to view all their new releases. TFL!!

Stamps: Bride and Groom (KSAI-902), Cracked Grout Mosaic (P22.05), Sentiment (KSAI-906) (All Stamps by Starving Artistamps); Paper: Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Elegant Eggplant, Basic Black, White (All Stampin' Up!); Ink: Whisper White, Versamark, Perfect Plum, Basic Black (All Stampin' Up!); Accessories: Wide White Grosgrain, Silver Brads, Paper Piercer.

Enjoy Every Moment

This stamp set called "Enjoy Every Moment" will not be available for purchase from SU until January 2008 in the Spring/Summer Idea Book & Catalog. I received it FREE when I attended the Regional Meeting in Louisville, KY. If you placed an order within 2 weeks of the Meeting for $400 or more then you were eligible to get this set free. I love it. I'm having a lot of fun using it. It has a lot of good sayings in it. TFL!!

Stamps: Enjoy Every Moment, Perfect Presentation; Paper: Apricot Appeal, Cameo Coral, Old Olive, White, Linen Prints Designer; Ink: Cameo Coral, Apricot Appeal, Old Olive; Accessories: Rhinestone Brads, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, 5-Petal Flower Punch.

Bella Baby Card

I made this card for Katy for the baby shower we had for her at work. I had this Stamping Bella image that I had colored several months ago but had not put on a card. I thought this was the perfect occasion. TFL!

Stamps: Stamping Bella, All in a Row, Warmest Regards (Sentiment); Paper: Certainly Celery, Cameo Coral, Lovely Lilac, Soft Sky, Soft Sky Designer; Ink: Basic Black, Black Stazon; Accessories: Scallop Circle Punch, 1-3/8" Circle Punch, 1-1/4" Circle Punch, 1" Punch, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, White Gel Pen, Non SU Coral Ribbon.

I'VE BEEN TAGGED

I've been tagged by NANCY RILEY, iSTAMP. I have gotten to know Nancy through this blogging adventure I have been taking and she has turned in to such a wonderful friend. I hope that one day we can meet in person. It would be great to finally meet and do this stamping thing, that we love so much, together.

1. Link to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog. You can see NANCY'S amazing blog HERE.

2. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself (on your blog, we all want to know them).

3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.

4. Let each person know that they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

7 things about myself:

* My closest friends know that I do a weird thing with my aqua pens. As I'm coloring with them the bristles sometimes spread apart on the ends and you know you can't color in small areas this way without getting way outside the lines. How do I fix that? I lick the bristles. So if you see me watercoloring ever so often you will also see my licking the end of the bristles. Yea, weird, I know. They're my brushes, right?

* I like to watch scary movies so this time of year is one of my favorites because that's about all you can find on TV around Halloween.

* I am NOT a morning person. My favorite thing to do is stay up until about 3:00 every night and sleep til 11:00. The problem is that when you have to get up at 6:30 to get an 8-year old ready for school this makes staying up late very tiring. Yes, half the time I do it anyway and then go back to sleep after he goes to school.

* I love dogs. I have 2 beagles that stay in the house with us and they probably get treated better than a lot of people do. Riley is my 6-year old male beagle and is the typical black, red and tan color. Lily is my 4-month old little girl that has stolen our hearts and she is red and white. She can tear up anything in the house faster than you can blink your eyes. Good thing we love her so much.

* You probably already know this but I LOVE to create. To get an idea in my head, put it down on paper (or a stamp) and then to see the final product, well, that's exilirating for me. I don't send out near enough of the cards I make though. I could probably start my own greeting card store.

* I am an only child and I have an only child. Just ask my husband how spoiled we both are. Yes, he spoils us and he is WONDERFUL.

* I had my one and only child when I was 35. It seemed to take forever to get pregnant but God knew when the right time was. Garrett has been the most wonderful thing that has happened to me and my husband. I stayed home with him until he started kindergarten and that was one of the best decisions I ever made in my life. I would take nothing for those precious years we got to spend together.

Since so many people have already been tagged I'm only going to tag a couple. They are:
Jody Morrow - Confessions of a Ribbon Addict
Jan Tink - StampsPaperScissors

Perfect Presentation #2

I like this card better than the first one I did with this set. I thought I would try double layering the scallop border and I think it gave it a nice touch. I punched some red cardstock out with the 1/8" circle punch and layered them on the scallop border to match the patterned paper. I stamped the small snowflake from the stamp set in Versamark on the red background paper. Now, on to a different set. TFL!!

Stamps: Perfect Presentation (Hostess); Paper: Real Red, Old Olive, Very Vanilla, Dashing Designer; Ink: Real Red, Old Olive, Versamark; Accessories: Slit Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, Brads, Non SU Dotted Organdy Ribbon, 1/8" Circle Punch.

My New SU Hostess Set

I couldn't wait to get some ink on this new set. After seeing this beautiful card Nancy Riley made I was so glad I picked this set from my last order. Nancy used the Winter Bright Scrappin' Kit on her card but I don't have that kit yet so I used the Dashing Designer Paper. I struggled pulling the card together but I'm very happy with how it turned out. I used the tab punch as a layer underneath the circle stamp but it didn't show up very well against the patterned paper so I outlined the tab punch with my Old Olive marker. TFL!

Stamps: Perfect Presentation, See You Around Jumbo Wheel; Paper: Real Red, Old Olive, River Rock, Very Vanilla, Dashing Designer; Ink: Real Red, Old Olive, River Rock; Accessories: Punches - Photo Corner, Tab, 1-3/8" Circle, 1-1/4" Circle, 3/4" Circle, and Horizontal Slot Punch, Brads, River Rock Ribbon, Jumbo Wheel Handle.

Halloween Bag

I created this bag for a friend that wants to give it to a precious 4-year old in her neighborhood. It should hold lots of candy for him.

I used Booglie Eyes for the creature images and watercolor crayons to color them in.

SC147 - Splitcoast Sketch Challenge

This card is for this week's sketch challenge on SplitcoastStampers. I really like participating in these challenges and I have missed it the past 3 weeks so I'm going to try and get back in the saddle and do these every week. The girls over at SCS are known for their great sketches.

I did the faux stitching on the patterned paper panel with the All in a Row stamp using Very Vanilla ink. I wanted it to show up good against the chocolate cardstock. I used my Fine Lace background stamp on the Cocoa cardstock. I don't know if you can tell in the picture or not but I put Glassy Glaze Enamel on the flower stamp and it's so shiny IRL. I then sponged the edges of the vanilla cardstock with Groovy Guava. Next, I inked my Linen background stamp with Groovy Guava, stamped it off once and then stamped the vanilla panel with it to give it a soft effect. TFL!!

Stamps: True Friend, Fundamental Phrases, Fine Lace, Linen, All in a Row; Paper: Groovy Guava, Choc. Chip, Close to Cocoa, Very Vanilla, Apple Cider Designer; Ink: Close to Cocoa, Groovy Guava, Choc. Chip, Very Vanilla, VersaMark; Accessories, Photo Corner Punch, Brads, Sponge, Cutter Kit, Choc. Grosgrain Ribbon, Glassy Glaze Enamel.

Wedding Card

I made this card for a friend to give at a wedding. She wanted a card to match the colors that they are using. I'm not sure if the card is elegant enough. Give me some comments please.

The flowers are embossed with SU Glossy Glaze Enamel and very shiny in real life. I outlined them in gold with my SU Zig Painty pen to match the gold cord on the card. TFL!!

Stamps: Baroque Motifs, All Year Cheer II (retired); Paper: Choc. Chip, Regal Rose, Very Vanilla; Ink: Choc. Chip, Regal Rose, Pretty in Pink, VersaMark; Accessories: Gold Cord, Gold Brads, Glassy Glaze Enamel, Zig Painty Pen.

To One of My True Friends

This is the first card I have made with this set. I wasn't sure I was going to get it but of course changed my mind after I saw all the great cards made with it by all the stamping guru's out there.

I stamped the flower on the main image on vanilla cardstock and then stamped it again, cut it out and raised it with a dimensional to give it more of a 3-D look. I used my crop-a-dile for dry embossing on the rust cardstock at the bottom of the patterned paper. I layer the word window punch with rust behind the vanilla piece. I used "Weathered" background stamp on the cocoa cardstock. That's the first time I have used one of my background stamps in a long time.

I have a special friend that this card is going to. You know who you are. Thanks for always listening to me and lending me a shoulder when I need it. TFL!!

Stamps: True Friend, Weathered; Paper: Really Rust, Groovy Guava, Close to Cocoa, Wild Wasabi, Vanilla, Apple Cider Designer; Ink: Groovy Guava, Wild Wasabi, Choc. Chip, Close to Cocoa; Accessories: Circle Rhinestone Brads, Punches - Scallop, 1-3/8", 1-1/4" and 1" Circle, Word Window, Crop-A-Dile, River Rock Ribbon, White Gel Pen.

New Toys

Today I went with a friend to the StampScrapArtTour in Chattanooga, TN. Oh my, did I ever think I had died and gone to heaven. There were so many awesome booths there and so many toys that I felt like I was in Santa's workshop for the stamp-a-holic. I came away with lots and lots of fun stuff and lots of new techniques. I used one of my new toys on this card, "Twinkling H2O's". If you haven't used this watercoloring tool you need to try it. The colors are so vibrant and sparkly in real life. The colors matched up very good with my SU cardstock. TFL!!

Stamps: Baby Jesus is Born; Paper: Always Artichoke, Purely Pomegranate, River Rock, Rose Red Designer, Confetti White; Ink: Black Stazon, Close to Cocoa (sponging on the edges of the Rose Red designer paper); Accessories: Twinkling H2O's, Brads, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, Photo Corner Punch, Cutter's Tool Kit, Non SU Wide Organdy Ribbon.

I've Been on Vacation

I'm so sorry I haven't posted in a while. I just got back last night from a week in FL and the week before that was spent preparing to go. It seems like forever since I have sat down and stamped. Here is a card I created about a month ago. I thought I would post it and then start working on more things starting tomorrow.

Stamps: Season of Joy, So Swirly Jumbo Wheel; Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Old Olive, Certainly Celery, White; Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Old Olive, Black; Accessories: Scallop Punch, Ribbon from Happy Me Scrappin' Kit, Slit Punch, White Gel Pen, 1-3/8" Circle Punch.

I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!

I have some great news. I have been chosen to be on the design team for Starving Artistamps. I am so honored that they have chosen me to work for them. I can't wait to get my first set of stamps and start creating. You can visit their website here to see what wonderful stamps they have and to also check out their other awesome supplies.

My Dear Friend

This card is a CASE of this card here. I really loved her card. I have been doing more square cards lately and I like the way they look. I just use my 5 in 1 envelope template from SU to make an envelope to match. The striped paper is from the Apple Cider designer paper out of the Holiday Mini catalog and the dotted Guava is from the designer prints out of the IBC. TFL!!

Stamps: Priceless, All Holidays, All in a Row; Paper: Choc. Chip, Wild Wasabi, White, Apple Cider Designer, Groovy Guava Designer; Ink: Wild Wasabi, Groovy Guava, Choc. Chip, Close to Cocoa; Accessories: Groovy Guava Ribbon, Circle Fire Rhinestone Brad, Punches - 1-3/8", 1-1/4" and 1", Dimensionals.

Fall is PRICELESS

I have been wanting to use this word stamp ever since I got the All Holidays set. It's my favorite stamp out of the whole set. I tried to make this card look more vintage than what I am used to making. I sponged Cocoa on the outside of the Sky designer paper and I also sponged Cocoa on the Olive piece with the words. Then I distressed the edges of the piece of Cocoa underneath all the mats. This card also has 8 brads. Too many? Overall, I'm pretty happy with the way the card turned out. TFL!!

Stamps: Priceless, All Holidays, All in a Row; Paper: Old Olive, Close to Cocoa, Really Rust, Confetti White, Fall Flowers Designer; Ink: Choc. Chip, Really Rust, Old Olive, Soft Sky, Close to Cocoa; Accessories: Brads, Ticket Corner Punch, Crafters Tool Kit, Photo Corner Punch.

Z-Fold Club Card

This was one of my Club cards last month. Yes, of course I used Season of Joy, my favorite stamp set right now. It's the only time I have used this set with my Clubs believe it or not. I'm just enjoying the heck out of it for my own personal use. TFL!!

Stamps: Season of Joy, So Swirly Wheel; Paper: Always Artichoke, Mellow Moss, Purely Pomegranate, White, Holiday Harmony Designer; Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Mellow Moss, Always Artichoke, Basic Black; Accessories: Non SU Moss Ribbon, Hodgepodge Hardware, Sponge, Coluzzle, Non SU Decorative Scissors.

Season of Joy - I Love You

I promise I'll get off this stamp set very soon. I'm loving it for my Christmas cards this year but I will do more cards with different sets. This one is just Oh, La, La. TFL!!

Stamps: Season of Joy, So Swirly Jumbo Wheel; Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Mellow Moss, Always Artichoke, White, Holiday Harmony Designer; Ink: Mellow Moss, Choc. Chip, Versamark; Accessories: Punches - Key Tag, Ticket Corner and Horizontal, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, Non SU Ribbon, Jumbo Wheel Handle.

Bright Tag Card

I love these tag cards but I swear I will never make another one. This one took me 3 hours to create. I'm really happy with the final results but if I ever do decide to do another one it won't be so detailed. The Darling Doodles Designer Paper is really gorgeous and this card really showed it off. TFL!!

Stamps: Garden Whimsy, Vases in Vogue, Wild About You, God's Blessings, In the Spotlight; Paper: Groovy Guava, Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, Brocade Blue, White, Darling Doodles Designer; Ink: Groovy Guava, Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, Blue Brocade, Basic Black; Accessories: In Color Ribbon in Wild Wasabi, Groovy Guava and Purely Pomegranate, Circle Rhinestone Brads, Green Stickles, Scallop Punch, Dimensionals.